Fugitive leader Muammar Gaddafi has issued an audio message urging Libyans to take up arms against the rebels battling his loyalists and accusing the National Transitional Council (NTC), currently running the country, of being a front for Western powers.

The message from the ousted Libyan leader was aired early on Thursday on Syria-based Al-Rai TV. "To all my beloved Libyans, the Libyan land is yours and you need to defend it against all those traitors, the dogs, those that have been in Libya and are trying to take over the land," Gaddafi stated.

"They were spies for the Italians and now they are spies for France. All those germs and rats ... capture all those who are working with NATO and the UK to bomb our country and kill Libyans and our children."

Gaddafi also denied reports that he had fled to Niger as "psychological warfare and lies". According to him, there was nothing unusual about a convoy of cars going to Niger.

"How many times do convoys transporting smugglers, traders and people cross the border every day for Sudan, Chad, Mali and Algeria," Gaddafi said. "As if this was the first time a convoy was headed towards Niger."